1
as in blocking
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2
as in procrastinating
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1
as in halting
to bring (something) to a standstill
endless complaints stalled the process of selecting the winning design for the memorial
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2
as in dying
to stop functioning
the engine stalls sometimes when it's very cold outside
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Recent Examples of stalling
Elizabeth Shackelford, Chicago Tribune, 20 Feb. 2026
Republican House Speaker Dustin Burrows promised swift action and vowed to brook no more stalling tactics from Democrats.
—Dave Goldiner, New York Daily News, 19 Aug. 2025
Kenny Choi, CBS News, 30 Apr. 2026
The veterans have reached a compromise with the administration, stalling the lawsuit for now, with a promise that the administration will follow the legal process to build the arch.
—Emily Guskin, ABC News, 30 Apr. 2026
The autopsies of Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner have not yet been completed, stalling the criminal case against their son Nick, who is charged in the couple’s grisly December 2025 deaths.
—Jami Ganz, New York Daily News, 29 Apr. 2026
The union has also accused Denver Processing of bad-faith bargaining by repeatedly stalling negotiations, failing to respond to the union’s proposals on key safety and work-life balance issues and declaring a final offer before meaningful bargaining could occur.
—Judith Kohler, Denver Post, 26 Apr. 2026
However, the commercial performance of the Zeekr Mix in China has been notably weak, with sales effectively stalling this year.
—Bojan Stojkovski, Interesting Engineering, 25 Apr. 2026
What if the reason your company’s transformation keeps stalling has nothing to do with your strategy, your technology, or your goals?
—Nia Bowers, USA Today, 15 Apr. 2026
If that cannot happen without stalling operations, the business needs to have enough extra people in the rotation to allow someone to step aside to resolve the situation.
—Robert Niles, Oc Register, 14 Apr. 2026
Magyar has focused almost entirely on kitchen-table issues, such as Hungary’s stalling economy and poor healthcare, and spoken little about foreign policy or the EU.
—Christian Edwards, CNN Money, 12 Apr. 2026
Adjective
The tense talks continued into a second day but concluded without progress, in a diplomatic effort that seemed little more than another stalling game for Putin.
—Elizabeth Shackelford, Chicago Tribune, 20 Feb. 2026
Republican House Speaker Dustin Burrows promised swift action and vowed to brook no more stalling tactics from Democrats.
—Dave Goldiner, New York Daily News, 19 Aug. 2025
Verb
The changes come after several high-profile problems involving autonomous vehicles in San Francisco, including Waymo vehicles stalling and blocking intersections during a blackout in December.
—Kenny Choi, CBS News, 30 Apr. 2026
The veterans have reached a compromise with the administration, stalling the lawsuit for now, with a promise that the administration will follow the legal process to build the arch.
—Emily Guskin, ABC News, 30 Apr. 2026
The autopsies of Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner have not yet been completed, stalling the criminal case against their son Nick, who is charged in the couple’s grisly December 2025 deaths.
—Jami Ganz, New York Daily News, 29 Apr. 2026
The union has also accused Denver Processing of bad-faith bargaining by repeatedly stalling negotiations, failing to respond to the union’s proposals on key safety and work-life balance issues and declaring a final offer before meaningful bargaining could occur.
—Judith Kohler, Denver Post, 26 Apr. 2026
However, the commercial performance of the Zeekr Mix in China has been notably weak, with sales effectively stalling this year.
—Bojan Stojkovski, Interesting Engineering, 25 Apr. 2026
What if the reason your company’s transformation keeps stalling has nothing to do with your strategy, your technology, or your goals?
—Nia Bowers, USA Today, 15 Apr. 2026
If that cannot happen without stalling operations, the business needs to have enough extra people in the rotation to allow someone to step aside to resolve the situation.
—Robert Niles, Oc Register, 14 Apr. 2026
Magyar has focused almost entirely on kitchen-table issues, such as Hungary’s stalling economy and poor healthcare, and spoken little about foreign policy or the EU.
—Christian Edwards, CNN Money, 12 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stalling
Adjective
-
The winner was the player who avoided being blocked the longest — a blocking game, a category of strategy game where the objective centers on restricting your opponent’s movement.—
Hanna Wickes,
Kansas City Star,
19 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
What was clear was that progress toward a universal theory of ultrafinitism has been halting in part because there has been no one clear motivation for the movement, or any singular approach to deciding what its underlying logic should look like.—
Quanta Magazine,
Quanta Magazine,
29 Apr. 2026
-
Blue Owl was among the poster children of this phenomenon, halting quarterly redemptions in OBDC II in mid-February, and opting instead to return capital periodically through portfolio asset sales.—
Leslie Picker,
CNBC,
27 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Another found that women who remained childless after a fertility evaluation had more than a twofold higher risk of dying by suicide than those who eventually did have a child.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
29 Apr. 2026
-
According to a February 2024 review of 45 studies encompassing some 10 million people, eating 10% more ultraprocessed foods raised the risk of developing or dying from dozens of adverse health conditions.—
Sandee LaMotte,
CNN Money,
29 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
The stock has declined nearly 28% in 2026, largely due to concerns over the social media platform’s decelerating year-over-year traffic growth and its sensitivity to macroeconomic conditions.—
Liz Napolitano,
CNBC,
21 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
That led many to believe that, while treatments and crisis care are vital, the goal of suicide prevention needs to expand beyond stopping people from dying to also giving them reasons to live.—
Aneri Pattani,
CBS News,
28 Apr. 2026
-
Bain walked purposefully, never slowing, never stopping — not even to size himself up in his new Bucs hat in the mirror — before striding onstage for a hug with the commissioner.—
Zak Keefer,
New York Times,
27 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The substitute looks up and sends a shot crashing against the post from a tight angle.—
Ben Church,
CNN Money,
28 Apr. 2026
-
There was a big crashing sound.—
Dana Taylor,
USA Today,
28 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
And, through it all, stocks have continued to steadily rise, buoyed by hopes for Fed rate cuts, stronger-than-expected corporate earnings and slowing but stubborn confidence that an AI boom might reap big rewards for investors.—
John Towfighi,
CNN Money,
29 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
The Chicago White Sox have been searching for offensive production from the catching position.—
LaMond Pope,
Chicago Tribune,
29 Apr. 2026
-
Sophomore Nate Roberts is a 6-5, 240-pounder who has blocking experience and showed off versatility catching passes in the spring.—
Cameron Teague Robinson,
New York Times,
27 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Stalling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stalling. Accessed 1 May. 2026.
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